Community Support Brings Advanced LAFD Training to the Table

“Engine 97, you’re on scene,” said Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Captain Justin Horwedel to a room of fellow firefighters. “You saw the plume of smoke coming up - your apparatus is right here, and you’re looking downhill,” he continued, pointing in the direction of where the engine needed to go.

Typically, this level of communication would happen over the radio as resources are coordinated for an incident. But the above description of a scene by Captain Horwedel, a member of the LAFD’s In-Service Training Section (ISTS), was part of an on-the-table simulation in preparation for future emergencies.

Captain Horwedel was describing the placement of various engines and task forces in response to a simulated brush fire on what’s known as a Simtable – an interactive, digital table that uses agent-based modeling, projection technology, and cameras to create dynamic simulations of emergencies like wildfires, floods, and hazardous material spills. This advanced 3D decision-support tool, funded by the LAFD Foundation, is critical for training, planning, and Department-wide education.    

For decades, the LAFD has used “sand tables” to map out incident strategies using miniature terrain and markers. Simtables bring that concept into the digital age, allowing complex scenarios to unfold dynamically for training purposes, bolstering LAFD readiness and pre-deployment strategies for anticipated incidents.  

The partnership between ISTS and the LAFD Foundation continues to strengthen firefighter preparedness year-round, from innovative training technology like the Simtable to other essential resources that help the LAFD remain at the ready.

The interactive tabletop system – which quite literally sits on top of a table – allows LAFD firefighters to simulate emergency scenarios in a safe, controlled environment. Using detailed maps and special modeling software, instructors can recreate conditions such as wildfire spread, terrain challenges, and resource deployment across neighborhoods and landscapes. Simtables even time how long it would take – down to a matter of minutes - for a fire, flood, or other disaster to impact surrounding communities.

While the public often sees frontline firefighting efforts, the preparation that makes those responses possible begins long before a disaster strikes.

Captain Horwodel, who has spearheaded the Simtable project, says that ISTS has completed six Simtable classes so far, reaching more than 150 LAFD members since its purchase in late 2025.  

While live fire drills remain an essential part of firefighter training, some disasters are nearly impossible to recreate in a training environment. Large-scale wildfires, earthquakes, and rapidly evolving incidents present complex challenges that require firefighters to make split-second decisions, coordinate resources, and adapt strategies in real time.

Before the Simtables, trainers would take firefighters into the field and attempt to simulate potential significant incident coordination, but their inability to emulate real-life scenarios limited the experience.  

“Now, we can take them anywhere in the city,” Captain Horwodel said of the dynamic design and mapping capabilities of Simtables. “We can help them develop the skills needed to be proficient in incident command.”  

Simtables bring the right players to the table – incident commanders, firefighters, and ISTS members, all of whom play a critical role when disaster strikes. Gathered around the table, they work together to analyze developing situations and test different response strategies. As conditions change, they must communicate, coordinate, and adjust their plans, just as they would during a real incident.  

“The digital progression of the fire is actually dictating objectives and action,” said Captain Matthew Lowenstein of ISTS, who has been a trainee at the table. “It’s not static, and there’s no guessing. [The incident] is happening in real-time.”

Exercises like the ones that are done on a Simtable strengthen the decision-making and situational awareness that are essential during large-scale emergencies. “Simtables put students in the hot seat,” Captain Horwodel emphasized. “It trains them to make good, sound decisions under real pressure. We had no way of doing that before now.”

Year-round, ISTS supports every LAFD firefighter, from their first days as a recruit through ongoing in-service training throughout their careers. The team administers certification exams, driving tests, and specialized skill assessments, ensuring that firefighters are prepared to meet the demands of one of the nation’s busiest fire departments.

That level of preparation relies on rigorous drills and hands-on instruction. As the rate and intensity of natural disasters in Los Angeles continue to increase, innovative training tools that enable firefighters to respond effectively in the moment and prepare for those moments are more necessary than ever.

Simtables are designed to help bridge that gap.  

“Without the Foundation, we would have never had this piece of equipment,” Captain Horwodel stated. He looks forward to the expansion of the program from current brush fire simulations to all-hazard training, like Hazard Materials (HazMat) incidents, floods, and earthquakes.

The Simtable exemplifies what is possible with community support. When the next emergency unfolds, the decisions firefighters make in those critical moments will rely on the preparation that happened long before the first alarm sounded.